Wireless networks and systems are becoming increasingly popular. But the deployment of wireless communications infrastructure is constrained due to a lack of available, interference free spectrum that may be used for reliable communications within a geographic area.
To enhance the availability and reliability of interference free spectrum, procedures that are governed by regulatory agencies (e.g., the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) in the United States) have been developed for allocating and governing spectrum use. In the U.S., for example, the FCC licenses spectrum in a primary spectrum market to Commission licensees.
A secondary market exists for the Commission licensees to sublease spectrum for use by other parties. Conventional secondary market leases involve the wholesaling of a spectrum holder's spectrum to another party. This is a one party to one party transaction in which use rights for an entire monolithic block of spectrum are “manually” transferred. These transfers have high overhead and transaction costs because they involve significant effort by an individual to seek a buyer or seller of spectrum rights, analyze spectrum suitability, and file compliance documentation once a transaction is made. Also, the current secondary market for licensed spectrum lacks the technology to accommodate complicated transactions involving the transfer of only a portion of a commission license's use rights in terms of geographic area, duration, and/or frequency.